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Document transcript

Alex Filipowski

MA Creative Technology

May 2012

A 3D Day in the Life of

Alan Turing

Major Project Proposal

The University of Salford

Abstract

This major project proposal for the MA Creative Technology postgraduate masterscourse at the University of Salford involves the creation of a 3D virtual gameenvironment and a website dedicated to Alan Turing and his work. The website willcontain information about Alan Turing and feature a 3D game, which will enable thewebsite visitors to assume the role of Alan Turing and to interact with theenvironment in a variety of ways. This will allow thevisitor

to be immersed into thevirtual experience of A 3D Day in the Life of Alan Turing.

Background

Alan Turing was a mathematician who was famous for his achievements at BletchleyPark during World War II, most notably for decrypting the German Enigma codes byutilising a machine called The Bombe. Turing was one of the founding fathers ofcomputer science, due to his blueprints for a computational

'Turing Machine' thatcould store information using binary code. Turing is well-known for creating aconcept known as the ‘Turing Test’, which refers to the ability of a human todistinguish between a computer and another human being without visual aid.

Inspiration for this project

While researching the life of Alan Turing for my Contemporary Arts Media Practiceproject, I was compelled to look at all aspects of his career and discover more abouthis life.

Alan Turing’s story is unique, as it not only focussed on his academic achievementsbut also his somewhateccentric

nature and prejudice from the government whodistanced themselves away from him once his sexuality was out in the open. Very fewpeople knew about his heroic efforts in World War II untilafter his death, in which hetragically is believed to take his own life when he was just 41 years old.

I feel that creating an interactive game about Alan Turing’s life would be an originalway of telling his story. This has not been attempted before, due to the difficulty inturning it in the format of a game and the fact that Turing’s story is not well known inthe public domain. Creating a light-hearted game about Turing in a playful mannerwould allow his life to be seen in a new light and attract anew target audience.

The primary target audience for my project are people who are unaware about thefantastic ideas that Alan Turing had, which are now a crucial part of our culture.Secondary audiences for my project include those who are interested inthe history ofcomputer science and those who are interested in cryptology during World War II.

Technical Influences

While brainstorming this project, I have been inspired by game makers and artistswho have utilised 3D technologies to create abstract virtual worlds. These worldscontain many different interactive objects and make the user feel immersed within theenvironment. Immersion can be created visually and by utilising appropriate music,sounds and ambiance.

Between the 60s and 80s, videogames were not considered an art form by many dueto the commercial nature of their creation and competitive game objectives.Videogames have started to become more like films in terms of scripts, visuals andaudio. This has added to the stylistic value of videogames, and has also led to thedevelopment of games which heavily focus on visuals such as Flower, Journey andSuper Mario Galaxy. Popular franchises such as Call of Duty, Mass Effect and Haloall focus on very detailed visuals, an intricate plot and a sweeping orchestral theme.This reflects the fact that videogames have now become a main part of modernsociety and rival films in terms ofgraphical capabilities, along with revenue andpopularity.

Fig 1. Item crafting interface in Minecraft

In many role-playing videogames, it is possible to take several individual items andcombine them into one item. This could be utilised to create a breakfast-making mini-game, where the user is asked to create a certain type of food based on availableingredients. This type of item crafting could also be utilised in later sections of thegame such as making repairs to the Bombe or decoding messages.

Fig 2. Main character of Grand Theft Auto riding a bicycle

In the videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, the main character is able to find abicycle and travel anywhere of their choice. The ability for the user to cycle toBletchley Park would provide a level of interaction which is unique and memorable.Turing's bicycle was one of his prized possessions. He once rode over

sixty miles andslept overnight at an inn just to be there for his first day of school. Turing also had ahabit of regularly adjusting his bicycle rather than pay to have it fixed.

In the videogame series Assassin's Creed, the player may explore towns freely andinteract with objects and other characters. A populated environment gives the player awider range of options in terms of interaction which will increase the level ofimmersion for the user and thus increase the amount of time they will spendexploring the environment.By populating the game with other characters such asTuring’s fellow colleagues, the environment will feel more natural and will allow theusers to feel a deeper connection to the game.

In the videogame The Sims, players are able to create their own custom avatar andgive them a variety of different coloured and patterned clothes. This customisationhelps to give characters their own individuality and makes the interactions moremeaningful.

By utilising this system in the 3D game, users will be able to create theirown persona which is unique to them.

Concept

My project aim is to develop a 3D game which would allow the user to assume therole of Alan Turing and relive his time at Bletchley Park. The user can travel aroundthe 3D space and interact with the environment and other characters. The game wouldstart with some character customisation options and then allow the user to take onAlan Turing's role by cycling to work, experiencing his daily routine and assisting thecode breakers.

The cycling portion of the game would allow the user to travel towards a specificlocation, either Bletchley Park or Turing's home. The interactive segments of thegame would take the form of a third-person free-roaming game in which the user canexplore an area and interact with objects to complete tasks.

This game would be playable on a website which will be created during this project.The project will contain an embedded version of the game which will require theUnity plug-in in order to be played on the user's computer.

Unity3D is a free game development tool which has been utilised by many gamedevelopers. Games can be published for use on PCs, smartphones and gamesconsoles. There are several developers who are currently working on first-personshooting games, driving games and role-playing games. There have also beenattempts to develop puzzle games and multiplayer games. Unity3D has been used todevelop the games Tiger Woods PGA TOUR Online, Battlestar Galactica Online andRochard.

Methodology

At the start of the project, research will take place to determine the best approach totake regarding development of the game environment and major aims of the project. Ihave been invited to discuss the project with a member of academic staff who hasworked on an Alan Turing exhibition

in Manchester. This will allow me to gain aunique insight into Alan Turing’s life and provide a good foundation forbrainstorming initial ideas. It will be necessary to research marketing methods inorder to allow the target audience to discover the project.

3D models of buildings, characters and objects will be created in 3D Studio Max.These will be imported into Unity3D and utilised as part of the game. Image files andtexture files will be created and edited with

G.I.M.P. Audio clips will be recorded andprocured for use within the game environment as sound effects, ambient noises ormusic.

Fig 3. Landscape generated using the Terrain Toolkit for Unity3D

Pre-made tools and assets can be used which reduce development time and allowbasic prototypes to be created more quickly. One example of this would be theTerrain Toolkit which allows for complex landscapes to be created rapidly. Bushesand trees can be placed randomly to improve the aesthetics. The terrain can

besculpted and edited at any point in the process. It would be possible to remove treesor reshape the land if a particular area requires a building.

Several pre-made game engines can be adapted for use in this project to reducedevelopment time. Theseexamples include a physics demo, a driving game and athird-person game.

Fig 4. Screenshot of CarTutorial for Unity3D

Fig 5. Screenshot of 3rdPersonShooter for Unity3D

When the main game environment has been created, it will be possible to playtest theenvironment and highlight areas for improvement and future development.

Once the environment is finalised, it will then be possible to promote the project andto attract a wider audience. This will then allow the ideal audience to experience thegame as

intended and permit a large number of user opinions to be captured.

Requirements

Hardware



Windows PC

Software



Unity3D–

Developing the 3D game environment



3D Studio Max–

Developing 3D Models



Audacity–

Mixing and editing of audio files



G.I.M.P.-

Editing of image files



Avidemux–

Editing of video files

Web Resources



Wordpress website–

Place where the game will reside

Timescale

The following is a timescale of the project.

When the game is fully developed, users will be able to assess the project by using asurvey. The survey will attempt to identify what their overall impressions are, thestrong aspects of the project and what improvements could be made to enhance theexperience.

I intend to complete the project in September, however if more time is available, thefinished project would

be a more complete and polished product.

Conclusion

My intended outcome of this project is to have created a fully interactive 3D game, inwhich the user is required to relive Alan Turing's life at Bletchley Park. The

websitewill provide additional information about Turing and provide links to more websiteswhich cover the subjects in more detail.

Once a 3D environment has been developed to its full potential, it can be reused forother projects which require a similar degree of interaction and immersion.